Oxidizability of lactams and lactam-based polyamides

In the chain oxidation of N‐alkylamides with molecular oxygen, propagation is the ratedetermining step under conditions when the oxidation rate is independent of oxygen pressure. The oxidizability of lactams and lactam‐based polyamides correlates with the energy of the formation of N‐alkylamide radical by ion of hydrogen from the methylene group adjacent to nitrogen. While for lactams this energy depends on the number of carbons in the lactam ring, for N‐alkylamides and polylactams such dependence is not observed.